Hydrophobia
by Air Condition
Summary: She was hoping that maybe he'd be okay when she went to visit him. It didn't work out the way she planned. He was a mess, and she was going to help him if he wanted her to or not. Tahorra


She wasn't entirely sure why she was going to see him. He wasn't the only bender to be equalized. She guessed that a part of it was that he was someone she knew personally (although it wasn't the best relationship) instead of someone in the crowd. She couldn't make _everyone_ feel better, but if she could help _anyone_, she was going to do it.

Another part of it was that she was told not to, and that just made it more tempting. Mako and Bolin both seemed to be against the idea. Bolin knew better than to try to stop her, though, so he just voiced his concern and then stopped altogether. Mako was a little more forceful about it, but even his complaints couldn't reach her today. She wasn't even sure if he knew that she had defied him. She didn't care if he did.

It wasn't hard to track Tahno down. If there was one thing the media loved more than an egotistical powerhouse like him, it was the fall from grace. Not that they weren't terrified of Amon, but the story sold, and that's all they wanted. Parts of it were even exaggerated, she noticed. Why they would need to add more horror to the story was beyond her.

Even with that information, it took her a while to find his house. She didn't really know her way around the entire city, especially the residential areas. When she found it, though, she couldn't say she was surprised. It was as she imagined it would be. Not as grand as Asami's house, but certainly big enough to show off his fame. A little too big for one person to live in, actually, but she supposed his inflated ego and herds of fans were more than enough to fill the house. At least, they would have been.

She looked around at the windows as she approached. She couldn't see any lights, but she wasn't quite sure what to make of that, and just knocked on the door instead. While she waited for him, she looked over at his mailbox, which was now overflowing with colorfully decorated envelopes and a few small packages, and just below that was a line of vases and flowers. She bent down to grab at least the letters for him. Had he really not even come outside to get the mail?

A minute later, and she was still waiting. Had he left? Then again, where would he go? She doubted he'd be able to move without it being all over the news. He probably just didn't want any guests. However, she wasn't going to be deterred so easily. She knocked again, putting her ear to the door. This time she only had to wait a few seconds before she heard something approach. The door began to shake, and she could hear a multitude of locks being undone from the other side. Finally, the door opened just a crack, and he peeked out from behind it.

"…Uh-vatar?"

She wanted to smile for him, as if it was supposed to be comforting, but his tone told her it wouldn't make a difference. He sighed and closed the door again, and Korra thought that was the end of that. She nearly turned around, not wanting to bother him if he really wanted to be alone _that_ badly, but one final clickof a lock, and then the door opened fully.

He looked even worse than he did before. The bags under his eyes had grown larger, his skin was pale, his lips were dry and cracked, and his hair seemed to be so filthy that it was stuck in a disheveled mess. She wondered if he hadn't been dressed properly a moment ago. His shirt looked as if he had literally thrown it on moments before he opened the door. The only thing he had going for him was the fake smirk he was trying to wear.

"Coming to make me a charity case, uh-vatar?"

"I just wanted to check on you… How are you doing?"

He stared at her for a moment to see if it was a trick question. When he came to the conclusion that it wasn't, he shrugged and told her he was no different. He wondered why she had to ask. Could she really not tell that he was worse than he had been at the police station? (Not that he'd ever admit that.)

"Can I do anything for you?" she asked.

"I thought we already discussed this, hm? Get Amon for me."

"No, I mean… anything else."

"No."

It was silent for a minute after that, both of them waiting for the other to leave. Neither of them did. Finally, he stepped aside and nodded for her to come in, a defeated sigh passing his lips. As he turned away from her, she could see his face fall. She wasn't expecting to be here very long, as a part of her had been hoping that he would be okay when she saw him. But, since he obviously wasn't, she didn't plan on leaving him alone so quickly.

The first thing that hit her when she got inside was the temperature. It was a lot colder than she was expecting. It didn't bother her, coming from one of the coldest places on earth, but it was still an inappropriate temperature for a house. Maybe he liked it that way.

"I, uh, got your mail from outside," she told him as they walked down the hall.

"Put it wherever, I don't care."

Korra hesitated and continued to hold them as the rounded the corner. Catching glimpses of other rooms, she could see that almost all of them were spotless, and she doubted any of them had been used recently. When they passed the kitchen, however, she could see that he had at least made use of _that_. Dirty plates and bowls all sat in a pile in the sink.

A few steps later and they had reached a living room of sorts. It was actually a little simpler than she was expecting, though given the grand aura of the other rooms, she guessed this wasn't a room he usually entertained in. It consisted of a few windows, a single table, and a large couch in the shape of an L. He told her she could take a seat. Tossing the mail down on the table, she sat down on the shorter side of the couch, while he took the longer end.

She wasn't quite sure what to say to him. He didn't seem to have any idea, either. After a few seconds of deafening silence, he leaned forward and spread out the envelopes on the table. He started sorting them into piles. One pile seemed to have the planer envelopes, and the other pile had the more colorful, flashy ones. Muttering to himself, he pushed one pile away and grabbed a lime green envelope off the other.

"What are those?" she asked as he tore it open.

"Fanmail."

"And the others?"

"…Bills," he shrugged.

After he had finished reading the first card, she saw a nostalgic smile creep onto his face. He tossed it aside and opened the next one, and she tilted her head to try and get a better look. The more letters he opened, the less he smiled. Eventually he looked as sad as he had when she first came. After reading one more, he pushed that pile away, too. She wondered if he was getting bored of them, but before she could ask, he spoke again.

"I don't get it," he muttered, burying his face in his hands.

"Get what?"

"What do they expect to get out of sending these? I'm done. Why do they give a fuck?"

"They're your fans; why wouldn't they? What happened to you was—"

"What _happened_ to me may as well have _killed_ me!" He snapped, though he seemed sorry for yelling a moment later. "My bending… That's all I've ever done. What am I now that it's gone?"

She wanted to tell him he was something. She wanted to remind him of other things he was good at. She wasn't the best person to ask, considering how little she knew of him. All she knew was his pro-bending. That's all the media ever said about him. She could see him get worse as he waited for her answer that would never come.

"See? Not even the Uh-vatar can give me the answer. What does that say about me?" he sneered, looking up at the ceiling.

"Tahno—"

He stood up before she could say anything. She stood up, too, determined not to let him run away from her. But, that didn't seem to be his plan. He grabbed the pile of fanmail off the table, intending to throw it away. However, as he turned to start walking, he swayed a little too far. She could see him start to lose his balance. She reached out and caught his arm, which he didn't seem to like. As soon as he could stand on his own again, he shrugged her off.

"Are you feeling okay?" she asked.

"Dizzy," he told her, brushing it off like it was nothing.

Now that she was standing so close to him, she could smell him. She always assumed he'd smell like expensive cologne or something unnatural. However, his natural smell right now was so potent that she wondered if he had bathed recently. Not that she'd ask him.

She watched his face as he stared wide-eyed at the wall, trying to recompose himself. He didn't seem to be able to. He flopped back down on the couch and stared up at the ceiling for a few seconds.

"Just… stay there. I'll get you some water."

"You know, guests aren't supposed to–"

She was gone before he could protest. He wanted to get up and follow her, but he stood too fast, and had to sit again.

She felt a little weird looking through someone else's kitchen. She had no idea where anything was. Most of the cabinets she opened were empty, or only had a single plate in them. That didn't surprise her, given the amount of dishes in the sink. When she did finally find the glasses, though, it seemed that every single one of them was in place. She grabbed one and filled it before bringing back to him.

"Have you had _anything_ to drink?" she asked as she came back in.

"I'm sober. Unless you're out to change that?"

She didn't find him funny. She stayed silent and held the glass in front of his face. He continued to stare at her with his fake smirk, but the longer she stood there, the less confident he looked. Finally, he took the glass from her, but only held it in his hands.

"You've got to drink it."

"Are you trying to drug me?" he snickered. "You could just tell me what you want; I'll give it to you, Uh-vatar."

"Are you… _afraid _of that?" she asked, finally confronting her growing suspicion.

He rolled his eyes at the question before throwing his head back to drink the entire thing in one gulp. The water had barely entered his mouth before he slammed the cup down on the table and spit everything out. He clasped his hands over his mouth and choked, and then gagged, and for a second she thought he might throw up. She sat next to him and ran her hand along his back, trying to help.

Even after he stopped coughing and spitting, he was still shaking rather violently. She could feel his heart beating too fast, and his breath coming in gasps. He kept trying to shrug her off, but she wouldn't go. He finally pulled his hands away from his mouth and shoved her away.

"_I don't want any fuckin' water."_


End file.
